Minimalist, "natural" beauty in editorial is something the media has unofficially (but, you know, officially) tokened the "clean girl" aesthetic over the last two years, but with the recent rise of more eclectic, maximalist fashion and increasing praise for unfiltered, messy, and relaxed lifestyles, we beg the question: will the "clean girls" survive this new wave of the industry?
There's nothing like being put in a box. You know, the ever-evolving media-backed prisons that women in particular face on a day-to-day basis, or as we more commonly refer to them: aesthetics. Don't get us wrong, we have nothing against appreciating particular niches with the evolution of fashion and consequently integrating them into our lives (guilty), but in such an unpredictable industry, the constant rotation of which traits warrant so-called ideality can be exhausting and quite frankly unsustainable to keep up with. And then there were the "clean girls," the one niche group that somehow managed to survive this cycle. That is, until now.
Let's turn to the data, shall we? Data, But Make it Fashion's Madé Lapuerta shared all the way back in January that the "clean girl" aesthetic was already declining in popularity by 16% a day, news that was not well-received among many existing enthusiasts, but nonetheless showed when the infatuation with slicked-back buns and linen pants quickly turned to fur coats and red bottoms (hello, "mob wives"). But does decline equate to death in this case, or are we simply seeing a reinvention?
Dok. Instagram @haileybieber
"[The 'clean girl' aesthetic] consists of timeless fashion and beauty, so to a certain extent, it will always be around, but it definitely will be rebranded a million times," The Citizen's Poste's social media expert Kiah Duplechain puts it. And there's no denying that that's something we're already seeing in everyone's infatuation with 90s minimalism, "vanilla girls," and a 4% increase in monochrome looks on the runway by comparison to the last FW season while designers like Jacquemus, Jitrois, Acne Studios, and The Row (or so we assume, since their FW24 collection remains behind closed doors) continue to embrace an air of "quiet luxury." And let's not forget that Sofia Richie Grainge, an arguable epitome of the "clean girl," hasn't yet lost her grip on the industry.
So here we're left with two possible arguments: either A, the "clean girl" aesthetic really is dying, and the remaining inklings of its impact on the fashion landscape are just that: the aftermath off too much of a good thing. Or there's B: we're currently experiencing a calm before the storm of a more relevant age of the "clean girl." And while there's certainly numeric and physical evidence that could support either claim, the fashion industry is truthfully too erratic to safely decide on one. So, we'll just have to wait and see what happens, and in the meantime, enjoy our green juice, matching Alo Yoga sets, and morning pilates classes regardless of the outcome (or don't, we won't judge).
By Mackenzie Ostrowski
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